Umbrella opening device



J. R. cAvANAUGl-l 2,775,976

UMBRELLA OPENING DEVICE `Ian. 1, 1957 Filed oct. 3.5,l 1955 ...HIMHIWII'Y IN VEN TOR.

United States Patent C) UMBRELLA OPENING DEVICE James R. Cavanaugh, Chicago, Ill.; Mildred Cavanaugh, administratrix of said James R. Cavanaugh, deceased Application October 15, 1953, Serial No. 386,234

4 Claims. (Cl. ISS-20) This invention relates toan attachment for large umbrellas to enable them to be more readily opened and closed, and more particularly to a toggle mechanism adapted to be secured to the center stern of a large umbrella of the type normally referred to as a lawn or beach umbrella.

Umbrellas of this type are ordinarily of rather large diameter and considerable di-ieulty is often encountered in raising them to the fully opened position. Movement through the last few inches of travel of the sleeve carrying the supporting. struts for the canopy portion of the umbrella is normally quite difcult. Conventional construction of such an umbrella includes a latch mechanism protruding from the center stem, which can be depressed to permit the operating sleeve to pass freely thereover. The latch is ordinarily designed so that the movement of the sleeve thereover from below will automatically depress the latch. This tends to increase the difculty encountered in moving the sleeve through the upper extremity of its travel and` it becomes an operation which cannot -be readily performed, particularly by Women orchildren. In addition, if the umbrella is disposed in the center of a table, as is oftentimes the case,-it is extremely awkward to reach across lthe table and at the sametime' apply a suicient amount of force to succeed in raising the umbrella to the fully opened position.

Itis, therefore, an object of this invention to provide an attachment for large umbrellas which permits the ready opening and closing thereof with a minimum of eifort. Another object is to provide a device of this character which will automatically support the umbrella after it has been opened to the point where' the maximum amount of force must be initially applied in order to raise the umbrella to the fully opened position. Yet another object is to provide a device which can be easily operated after this position has been obtained, to cause theV umbrella to be moved into, and locked in, the fully opened position. Stilly another object of this invention is to provide a mechanism of the character described which may be' very easily secured to any large umbrella by a simple clamping mechanism. Another object is to provide' a toggle mechanism which can be operated' ea'sily with one hand and, therefore, which will permit the final movements of the opening of the umbrella to be carried out with only one hand. Another object of the inventionY is' to provide an attachment of the character'desci'ibed which' is both simple in construction and4 inexpensive to manu'- facture, and yet which' is positive in its action;

Further objects andA advantages of this invention; will become evident as the description proceeds and from an examination of the accompanying drawing which illustrates one embodiment of tli'e` inventionI and in whichV similar numerals refer to similar parts throughout the several views.V

In the drawings:

Figure l isi afview inl elevation of a fragmentary por'- tion of the stem of ai large umbrella showing the manner fr* ICC in which a device incorporating the invention may be attached thereto.

Figure 2 is another view in .side elevation of the stem and mechanism shown in Figure 1', the view being taken from the right, as viewed in Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a view in vertical cross section of the stem and a portion of the mechanism shown in Figure 1, the view being taken along the line 3 3 thereof.

Figure 4 is a view in vertical cross section of the mechanism shown in Figure l, the view being' taken along the line 4-*4 of that figure.`

Referring now to Figure l, a portion of the stem 10 of a conventional beach or lawn umbrella is there shown. The stem 10 has a collar 12 adapted to be slideably moved therealong, this collar having a flange 14 formed at the upper end thereof, which flangeis adapted to have this supporting strut (not shown) of the umbrella pivotally supported thereby.` A spring latch 16 may be disposed in a suitable slot 18 in the stem 10, which latch member is adapted to support the sleeve 12 after it has passedupwardly on stem 10 over the latch member 16, and the latter has sprung back into the extended position shown in Figure '1.

Thus to open the umbrella conventionally, it would be necessary to move the sleeve 12 from a position on the p stem 10 well below the latch 176, up to a point beyond the latch 16. This latch would normally be automatically depressed by the upward movement thereover of the sleeve 14 and would snap into the position shown in Figure l after the sleeve 12 had passed thereover, so that it would be adapted to support the sleeve 12.

The mechanism incorporating the invention is adapted to be supported on the stem 10 by the split-collar member 20 composed of the two halves 22 and 24 adapted to be brought in gripping relation with the stem 10 by the bolt 26 and the nut 28 threadedly received thereon, as best shown in Figure 4, suitable openings being provided in the flanges 30 and 32 of the two halves 22 and 24 ofthe collar 20. The oppositely disposed flanges 34 and 36 on the two halves 22 and 24., respectively, of the collar 2@ may be secured together by the -bolt 38 and the nut 40 adapted to be threadedly received thereon. The two flanges 34 and 36 may be held in spaced relation by the sleeve 42 through which the bolt 38 extends.

As shown inFigure 4 the upper end 44 of the depending arm 46 is journaled on the sleeve 42, the two halves 48 and 50l of the arm 46 being provided with suitable openings 52 and 54 in which the collar 42 is adapted to be received. The opposite end` 56 of the depending arm 46 has the control lever 58 pivotally secured thereto intermediate the ends of the latter as best shown in Figure l. The control arm 584 may have a suitable opening provided therein through which a pivot member such as the bolt 60 may extend. This bolt 60 may be provided with a lock nut 62 so that a suicient amount of friction will be provided at the point of pivotal mounting of the control arm 58 to cause it to remain inV any position of adjustment desired.

The outer end 64 Vof thecontrol lever 58l maybe provided with a double handle 66-66- as shown in Figure `2. The inner end 68 of the control lever 5S may have a shoulder 70 formed thereon which is adapted to co-operate with the ange- 14 on the sleeve 1'2 previously described. The control lever 58 as shown in Figure 3 may be formed of two pieces of stock secured together by the rivet 71'2 in the endl 68 and the bolt 74 in the end 64 which bolt also serves to secure the handle member 66-66 thereto. The inner extremity 76 of the control lever 58 may have a concave configuration, as best shown in Figure 3, for al purpose which will later appear.

The initial position of the opening mechanism may preferably be similar tok that shown in dotted lines in' Figure l. In the completely collapsed position of adjustment of the umbrella the collar 12 will be in a position considerably lower than that shown in dotted lines in Figure 1. Therefore, the lower end 68 and the shoulder 7) thereon will actually abut the stem 1l) unless they are held in spaced relation thereto by the adjustable stop member 73 which may be disposed between the two sides 48 and Si) of the depending arm i6 as shown in Figure l. The angular position of adjustment of the stop 78 may be varied by loosening the bolt 80 and nut 82 which may be provided to secure the stop in the selected position. As shown in Figure l the stop will normally abut the stem 10 when the depending arm 46 is in the lowermost position. The opposite end of the stop member 73 will in turn abut the control lever` 58 it the end 64 of the latter has been raised to the uppermost position. The end result will be that the arm 46 and the lever 58 will assume the position shown in dotted lines in Figure 1, with the shoulder 7% in spaced relation to the stem 10.

The actual space between the shoulder 7) and the stem 10 may be adjusted by positioning of the stop member 78 so that it is substantially less than the distance Which the flange 14 projects outwardly from the stem 10. Thus when the collar 12 is raised along the stem 10 it will be momentarily brought in abutment with the shoulder 7). This shoulder is preferably provided with a taper such that the lever 58 will be moved outwardly as the liange 14 continues its upward movement and the arm 5S will then move again inwardly toward the stem as soon as the anve 1d has moved beyond the shoulder 70. This in turn will permit the sleeve 12 to then be released, if desired, so that it will move downwardly into abutment with the shoulder 70 as shown in dotted lines in Figure l. The umbrella opening mechanism is then in what may be called the cocked position. The hand of the individual opening the umbrella which has been used to move the sleeve upwardly and to partially open the umbrella by such movement may then be removed and the sleeve 12 will be automatically held in the partially open position by the opening mechanism, as shown in dotted lines in Figure l.

The same hand which previously was used to move the sleeve 12 may then be used to grasp the handle member 66-66 and to apply a light downward pull thereto. The application of such a downward force to the end 64 of the control lever 5S will cause a lifting force to be applied to the frange 14 of the sleeve 12 by the shoulder 70 of the lever 5S. This lifting force will in turn cause the sleeve 12 to move upwardly over the latch 16 previously described, protruding from the stem 10. The latch will snap back into the fully extended position after the sleeve has passed and will then form a support for the sleeve when the lifting force is released from the handle 66-66 of the lever 58. The position to which the sleeve 12 may be moved before releasing the lifting force applied by the lever 5S is shown in full lines in Figure l. As previously mentioned, the inner end 76 of the lever 58 may have a concave configuration so that it will have no tendency to slip out of alignment with the sleeve 12 as the lifting force previously described is applied thereto.

By proper design of the mechanism it may thus be seen that a relatively small amount of force applied to the handle 66-66 of the lever 58 will serve to readily move the sleeve 12 into the fully opened position. This is in contrast to the extreme difficulty often encountered in attempting to raise the sleeve 12 by hand and to simultaneously depress the latch member 16 so that the sleeve. will pass thereover into the fully opened position. With a design such as that disclosed in the accompanying drawing it has been found that a woman or even a child can readily open even a relatively large umbrella since none of the forces necessary to be applied are of any considerable magnitude. Also, the manner in which the 4 f umbrella can be moved into what has been termed the cocked position is of particular convenience since it enables the umbrella to be first partially opened and then the final opening movement can be readily applied by merely reaching up a hand applying a downward force to the end 66 on the lever S8.

When it is desired to lower such an umbrella from the fully opened position (which in many instances is as diliicult or even more diliicult than the opening process) the mechanism can be utilized in substantially the reverse manner to easily accomplish the desired result. After the umbrella has been opened as described above it may be found desirable to return the opening mechanism to substantially the position shown in dotted lines in Figure 1. In this case when it is desired to close the umbrella the mechanism must first be brought into the position represented substantially by the full lines in Figure 1. ln other words the shoulder 70 on the lever 58 is brought into abutment with liange 14 on the sleeve 12 as before. Sufficient downward. pressure is then applied to the handle 66-66 to move the lever 58 slightly and to lift the sleeve 12 out of abutment with the latch member 16 so that the latter may then be depressed sufficiently to per mit the sleeve 12 to be allowed to pass downwardly thereover. This downward movement of the sleeve 12 can be readily accomplished by permitting the handle 66-66 and the end 64 of the lever 58 to gradually rise.

As soon as the sleeve member 12 has reached the position shown in dotted lines in Figure 1 the opening mechanism and particularly the shoulder 70 on the lever 58' may be disengaged by manually lifting the sleeve and moving the end 68 at the arm 58 outwardly away from the stern 10 a suicient distance to allow the ange 14 of the sleeve 12 to pass freely in a downward direction. The sleeve 12 may then be permitted to drop to the fully closed position and the opening mechanism may be returned to substantially the position shown in dotted lines in Figure 1 so that it is again ready to co-operate with the liange 14 of the sleeve 12 when the umbrella is again opened.

It may thus be seen that a relatively simple device is provided which is of very great assistance in both the opening and closing of a large umbrella. The mechanism is extremely simple to operate while at the same time being positive in its action. It may be readily attached in the operating position to the stem of an umbrella and, therefore, lends itself to being supplied as either standard equipment or an accessory on such umbrellas.

In the drawing and specilication there has been set forth a preferred embodiment of the invention, and although speciiic terms are employed, they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only and not for purposes of limitation. Changes in form and in the proportion of parts, as well as the substitution of equivalents are contemplated, as circumstances may suggest or render expedient, without departing from the spirit or scope of this invention as further defined in the following claims.

I claim:

1. A toggle mechanism for opening and closing an umbrella having a center stem, a sleeve slidable on said stem to open and close said umbrella and a latch member for abutting said sleeve to hold such umbrella in open position, comprising a depending arm pivotally secured at its upper end to Said center stem above said latch member, a control lever pivotally secured intermediate its ends to the lower end of said arm, a shoulder on one end of said control lever adapted to support said sleeve when said shoulder on said lever is disposed in the lowermost position of adjustment, said shoulder providing a means of lifting said sleeve when the opposite end of said control lever is pivoted downwardly.

2. A toggle mechanism for opening and closing an umbrella having a center stem, a sleeve slidable on said stem to open and close said umbrella and a latch member for abutting said sleeve to hold such umbrella in open position, comprising a depending arm pivotally secured at its upper end to said center stem above said latch member, a control lever pivotally secured intermediate its ends to the lower end of said arm, a stop member on said depending arm adapted to abut said stem so as to position said earrn and the lower end of said lever in closely spaced relation to said stem7 a shoulder on the lower end of said lever adapted to coact with said sleeve when said arm and lever are so positioned to support said sleeve and to control the movement of said sleeve when the opposite end of said lever is pivoted downwardly.

3. A toggle mechanism for opening and closing an umbrella having a center stem, a sleeve slidable on said stem to open and close said umbrella and a latch member for abutting said sleeve to hold such umbrella in open position, comprising a depending arm pivotally secured :at its upper end to said center stem above said latch member, a control lever pivotally secured inter mediate its ends to the lower end of said arm, a stop member adapted to position the lower end of said lever in close association with said stem, and a shoulder on the lower end of said lever adapted to coact with said sleeve when said arm and lever are so positioned to support said sleeve and to control the movement of said sleeve when the opposite end of said lever is pivoted downwardly.

4. A toggle mechanism for opening and closing an umbrella having a center stem, a sleeve slidable on said stem to open and close said umbrella and a latch member for abutting said sleeve to hold such umbrella in open position, comprising a depending arm pivotally secured at its upper end to said center stem above said latch member, a control lever pivotally secured intermediate its ends to the lower end of said arm, a shoulder on the lower end of said lever adapted to coact with said sleeve when said arm and lever :are so positioned to support said sleeve and to control the movement of said sleeve when the opposite end of said lever is pivoted downwardly, and a stop member adapted to maintain an angular relation between said depending arm and said lower end ot' said control lever when the latter is in the lowermost position.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,918,017 Christ July 11, 1933 FOREIGN PATENTS 500,631 Germany .lune 24, 1930 

